Serena Williams' shocking loss is the worst of her legendary career

Serena Williams didn’t just lose on Wednesday at the French Open, she suffered the worst loss of her Grand Slam career to a player who had never won a set against a player ranked in the top eight.

Garbine Muguruza of Spain routed the world No. 1 and reigning champion 6-2, 6-2, giving Serena her first second-round defeat at a major since the 1998 Australian Open, when she lost to big sister Venus in her first-ever Grand Slam appearance.

For as dominant as Serena has been after turning 30, surprise losses at Slams are nothing new. In the 12 majors she’s played since returning from a 2010 injury, Serena is more likely to not advance past the fourth round (six times) as she is to make the final (five times).

Garbine Muguruza celebrates her win. (Getty Images)

There was the shock loss to Virginie Razzano in the first round of the 2012 French Open, the flat performance against Ana Ivanovic in the fourth round at this year’s Australian Open and the injury-aided defeat to Sloane Stephens in Melbourne the previous year. But while other results may have been more surprising on paper, none was as shocking to watch as Wednesday’s.

Serena, the best server in the history of women’s tennis, was broken in five of eight games. She hit eight winners against 29 unforced errors. Her footwork made it look like she was playing in quicksand rather than clay. In the end, Muguruza, who entered Roland Garros ranked No. 35, looked like the top seed finishing off a routine win, holding at love to score the biggest win of her life. The four games won were the fewest in any of Serena’s previous grand Slam losses.

“It was one of those days,” Serena said after the match.

(Getty Images)

When the French Open draw was released on Friday, tennis fans looked ahead to a potential third-round match between Serena and Venus. Now, after Venus’s loss, which occurred 63 minutes before her sister’s, the draw reads: Garbine Muguruza vs. Anna Schmiedlova.

That’s good news for the rest of the draw, but especially Maria Sharapova. The 2012 French Open champion would have faced Serena, an opponent she hasn’t defeated since 2004, in the quarterfinals. But after losses by Serena and No. 2 seed Li Na, Sharapova finds herself as the prohibitive French Open favorite.

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